


it’d be an honor to have you do me no good

by sinteresting_facts



Category: Original Work, World of Warcraft
Genre: Alcohol, Confessions, Drunkenness, Dubcon technically Bc there’s alcohol usage, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Internalized Homophobia, Internalized Transphobia, Kissing, Other, Unrequited Crush, and mixed signals, or explicit, so if you’re squicked by that be careful! But nothing graphic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-10
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-10-25 11:42:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,928
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17724533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sinteresting_facts/pseuds/sinteresting_facts
Summary: It fucking sucks to fall in love with a straight guy. Takes place roughly six years in the past.





	it’d be an honor to have you do me no good

**Author's Note:**

> titles from a song written by one of my dearest friends, Melissa, which we performed together as a band a few years back!
> 
> EDITS: I realized I’m a massive idiot and that Aatto, a dude w/ PTSD who got blown up would probably NOT want to go be around fireworks. Changed some things around!

The bright flickering of paper lanterns cast a soft, lively glow across Lake Elune’ara; the crowds of druids and elves who inhabited the shores were all dressed in finery and crowns of blossoms.

 

There were so many people, and Schae had to skirt around the edges of the crowds to avoid being touched or shoved around. He couldn’t fly, there was a strong advisory against flying given the fireworks, but he could slip into the shadows. He padded quietly over to the drinks vendor and dropped the cloaking spell a few feet away with a stretch and a yawn. His ear flicked back as he heard familiar uneven footsteps. Schae turned his head and tilted his snout up to smile at Aatto.

 

“Why hello there stranger,” he chirped, tail wagging just a bit.

 

“Hello yourself. I was concerned when you ran off earlier, where’d you go?”

 

Schae winced, and shifted back and forth on his paws as Aatto closed the gap and came in close to his side with a curious look in his eyes.

 

He shivered a little at the proximity, “Right, sorry. It’s loud by the main festival area.”

 

“Didn’t you get a pair of ear muffs?”

 

Schae shook his head, and Aatto frowned.

 

“Larchey you should’ve told me, they were handing them out by the fireworks vendor before the show.”

 

“I didn’t realize, sorry.”

 

“You don’t have to apologize—do you want to go back? You can borrow mine and I can get another pair.”

 

Schae shook his head, “We have all week to come visit the festival. Why don’t we go sit somewhere?” 

 

Schaelarche winced at a distant crackle of a Rocket Cluster going off. “Somewhere quieter?”

 

Aatto watched him for a moment and then nodded with a mildly relieved expression, “Good idea. Shall we get drinks, then?”

 

Schae cracked a small smile, “They’ve got _cheap_ Moonglow.”

 

He turned and got in line with Aatto following. It only took a few minutes before he had a large skin of alcohol in hand. The two walked along the bank until they found a quieter spot. Schae relaxed visibly the further they got from the commotion and stretched before shifting down. He shook out his hair, making auburn curls fly every which way before he pushed it all out of his face. Aatto sat as he did this and opened his drink.

 

“It’s so beautiful,” Schae remarked, taking a seat next to Aatto and looking out over the sparkling water. Aatto finished taking a long swig before sighing contentedly.

 

“It truly is.”

 

Schae’s heart swelled and he also took a drink from his own flask.

 

The two of them talked for awhile about everything and nothing in particular. It was comfortable, the Moonglow loosened him up and quite literally made him glow a bit. Elven alcohol never ceased to amaze.

 

Schae eventually found himself laying across Aatto’s lap, giggling with him at a stupid pun Aatto’d made: ‘“ _And so Xenalis turned to the treant and said,’let’s make like a tree and leaf. Needless to say the treant was not amused.’”_

 

Schae reached up to pet Aatto’s cheek. “How are you so soft…”

“I use moisturizer.”

 

“Yeah but.” He didn’t have a counter to that. “Yeah.”

 

Aatto poked his cheek, “What’s your excuse?”

 

Schae colored slightly, cheek smushed where Aatto still had his finger. “I dunno, my skin’s just soft.”

 

Aatto chuckled and poked his other cheek with his free hand. He laughed a little harder at the face he made Schae make with his hands. Schae mirrored Aatto and poked his cheeks and snorted before breaking out into bubbly laughter. The edges of Schae’s eyes crinkled as he smiled, and without really thinking he leaned up quickly and pecked Aatto’s lips.

 

Aatto chuckled quietly with a good-natured eye roll, and seemed to think nothing of it. Schae hmphed internally and supported himself with his arm as he leaned up again to kiss Aatto. Aatto’s lips were just as soft as the rest of his face, and the little surprised gasp that came from him was duly adorable. His lips parted, as did Schae’s, and the kiss deepened for a few moments. He could feel it as Aatto tilted his jaw ever so slightly and made everything that much more perfect. Schae’s eyelids fluttered shut as he took in the feeling of it all.

 

Barely a minute had passed before Aatto made a little muffled noise and pulled away, chest rising and falling as he caught his breath. Schae blinked at him and noted the warmth in his cheeks and the slight chill that rested on his previously occupied lips.

 

Aatto licked his lips, a movement which Schae watched closely with half lidded eyes, and then looked sharply at Schae with a bewildered, if not agreeable, stare.

 

“Wait, what was that?”

 

Schae stared, “...what? What was what?”

 

“That—the, that, the thing that just happened, the,” Aatto flipped his hands up and smushed the tips of each of his fingers together in a smooching gesture, “that.”

 

“Aatto that was a kiss—“

 

“ _I know what a kiss is,”_ Aatto sighed, sounding more panicked than irritated, “I meant _why.”_

 

Schae turned a brighter red, if that was even possible.

 

“Be…...cause……..beeeee-cause…’cause….I have feelings? For you,” he managed, and then upon seeing Aatto’s continually confused expression immediately backtracked, “Friend feelings-HA-friendly, friend feelings.”

 

“..Schaelarche?”

 

“Yes...Aatto?”

 

“How drunk are you?”

 

“Aatto that’s not w—“

 

“I’m serious, how drunk are you?”

 

“Buzzed at most—“ “ _Bullshit_ ,” Aatto frowned. “Don’t lie to me Schaelarche. Man to man. Tell me.”

 

“...fairly.. y’know I’m a lightweight.”

 

Aatto sighed and turned his head away, bringing his knuckle up to rest his chin on it in thought. His lips still tingled.

 

“Please don’t be mad, Aatto.”

 

Aatto glanced back at Schae, expression softening, “I’m not mad, Larchey.”

 

“I’m in my right mind, you didn’t, coerce me or.” He bit his lip.

 

“I know—obviously—, I know...,” Aatto sighed and paused. “I’m not entirely sober either,— we’re out in the open, anyone could see and get the wrong idea.”

 

“Who would care?” Schae perked up a little at a thought, “We could go further, somewhere deeper in the woods.”

 

“No, no, Schaelarche, I don’t—“

 

“It’s okay, I don’t like being in public either.”

 

“Schae—“

 

“And it’s okay, we’re both a little drunk it’s alright.”

 

“ _Schaelarche,”_ Aatto said in a nearly pleading tone. “I’m not...attracted to men.”

 

Schaelarche went still and then furrowed his brow slowly in confusion as his brain worked.

 

“You called Alion handsome the other day.”

 

Aatto sighed.

 

“You complimented that one man with the braids at the New Years Dinner on his robes and then _winked._ ”

 

Aatto snorted a huff. “Schael—“

“—We got drunk a few weeks ago and you called _Malfurion_ light-be-damned _Stormrage_ a, and I **_Quote_ ** _, ‘blessed miracle of a man.’”_

 

 _“_ He’s a master of druidry how could I not think that!”

 

“Aatto.”

 

“Schaelarche.”

 

“Aatto.”

 

“I’m not going to say your name again.”

 

Schae rolled his eyes and sighed with exasperation. Frustration itched at the back of his mind, and he resisted the urge to give into the Curse. This was so not a good time. “It’s okay to like men, Aatto.”

 

“Obviously, but I still don’t,” he narrowed his eyes and something odd lingered in his gaze.

 

“You’re sure about that.”

 

“Very.”

 

“You’ve lived for countless years and you’ve never even tried?” Schaelarche stared him down with those sharp, intense eyes. Crystalline blue bore into gold, but Aatto only frowned further.

 

“I don’t exactly remember much of it,” he said, and one of his ears twitched.

 

“You don’t have to repress this for anyone’s benefit, no one would judge you for that here—“

“—you don’t know that—“

“—I do, they’d more likely judge you for being born bright pink than that—“

“—I don’t think that’d be the case—“

“—Aatto would you just—.”

 

Schae stopped, realizing their proximity had shifted; they were close enough now that their noses almost brushed against each other’s. Schaelarche took a small breath in, eyes falling to Aatto’s mouth for a moment. Aatto blinked slowly, which Schae knew because the golden glow of his eyes cut out for a moment.

 

They met each other in the middle, mouths sliding together less than gracefully. Schae’s hands crept up Aatto’s chest as his mouth moved against his and finally came to settle on his shoulders. Schae felt like he was filled with wriggling butterflies, and when he leaned more of his weight on Aatto’s front and the other responded by laying down on his back, Schae’s heart skipped a beat. Almost giddy, Schae moved his hands to the sides of Aatto’s head, threading his fingers in his hair gently. Aatto made a small content noise into Schae’s mouth, and laid a hand lightly on Schae’s back.

 

It was in moments like these that the foot and-a-half difference in their heights became so very clear. Paradise, Schae thought. This was what paradise was like. Laying on the lakebed, head pleasantly fuzzy from drinking, with his friend here like _this_ with him.

 

Once again though, Aatto broke away, this time turning his head to the side quickly. Schae jumped back, brow knitting itself once again.

 

Aatto shook his head, “No, no, I’m sorry, I can’t.”

 

Schae could feel a cold pit of discomfort and pain form in his gut before he noticed the labored rise and fall of Aatto’s chest, and the obvious magenta blush across his cheeks. He _had_ enjoyed that, but the longer Schae watched Aatto, the more the tension in the elf’s limbs became clear. He watched for a moment more as he wrapped his arms around himself.

 

“I. I could, I could pretend I was,—y’know,—if you wanted.”

 

Well those words certainly were out in the open now. Schae had tried to weed the desperation out of his voice, but it clearly hadn’t worked as Aatto turned to face him with a horrified expression on his face.

 

“Larchey, no,” he whispered.

 

“I’d be okay with it, really, it’s not, it’s not like I’m that far off anyways. And then we coul—“

 

“ _Schaelarche.”_

 

Schae closed his eyes and swallowed at the way Aatto said his name. His arms tightened around his chest and he let out a sigh, but didn’t respond.

 

He heard Aatto swear something in Darnassian before there came the sound of shuffling. One warm and one wooden arm wrapped around him, and he relaxed partially into Aatto’s embrace.

 

“I would never ask you to do that.”

 

“I know, y’didn’t ask, I offered.”

 

“Did you think I would take that offer?” Aatto’s voice was so quiet. So gentle. Schae hated how sweet he was.

 

He shook his head.

 

“....did you really want me to take that offer?”

 

“No…..no, I. I don’t know.”

 

“You’re not a woman, Larchey. No part of you is.”

 

Stupid drunken tears welled up in the corners of his eyes, and Schae nodded reluctantly.

 

“And I don’t see you as a woman, for the record.”

 

Schae didn’t actually hate how sweet he was.

 

“M’sorry.”

 

“It’s alright, Schaelarche, it’s alright.”

 

“M’sorry about everything.”

 

Schae could feel him shake his head against the fluffy mass of his hair.

 

“I’m sorry too, that I can’t give you what you want.”

 

“......you don’t have to say sorry for that…”

 

“I know, but I want to. I do care about you, just…..in the way I can.”

 

“I love you Aatto.”

 

“I love you too Larchey,” he stated it calmly and softy.

 

“M’sorry again, I didn’t mean it like—“

 

“I know. I know.”

  



End file.
